Late Wednesday morning a barge pushed by the 75'x24'x10'6" towboat Pecos allided with another barge that was moored at a docking facility owned by Chevron. A shelter-in-place was ordered for the facility only, after as much as 23,000 gals. of naphtha (PTN) was released into the ship channel. The Coast Guard shut down a 1.5 mile section of the upper ship channel from Light 152 to Greens Port Industrial Park. Kirby Inland Marine owns the barges and the towboat. Kirby’s 60'x26' towboat Lucille Brooks was also at the scene.
The Coast Guard, Texas General Land Office, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and other agencies were called to the scene. "Upon consultation with the NOAA support coordinator, their models showed that most of the product would evaporate in approximately three hours," said Cmdr. Eric Carrero, the federal on-scene coordinator for the Coast Guard. "We are continuing to ensure the safety of personnel and the environment." The Houston Ship Channel was reopened at 2:08 p.m.
According to the video of the incident, the pilot of the towboat Pecos that is pushing the barge that contacted the moored barge looks as if he knew he couldn’t make the turn without an allusion occurring. Another towboat, possibly the Lucille Brooks, seems to be racing to the front of the tow to help turn it before an allusion can occur, but, ultimately, it gets there too late. The Coast Guard could not comment on any of this because the investigation is ongoing.
Responders continued to work Thursday to ensure the safety of people in the area, and to minimize any impact to the environment if possible.
The moored barge was carrying approximately 30,000 bbls. of naphtha, or more than 1 million gallons, and the impacted tank had approximately 5,000 bbls.
